COLOMBO, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka has declared 20 more forests as protected reserves under the national "Vanaspathi" program, according to the Ministry of Environment.
The declaration was made on Saturday at the Sandathenna Forestry Institute in Nuwara Eliya under the patronage of Environment Minister Dammika Patabendi.
The newly declared reserves are located in Nuwara Eliya, Kegalle, Ampara, Badulla, Vavuniya and Anuradhapura districts, and cover a combined area of nearly 9,538 hectares.
According to the ministry, the government has so far gazetted 93 forests as protected reserves through the Ministry of Environment and the Department of Forest Conservation. With the latest additions, the total land area covered by protected forest reserves has increased to nearly 65,000 hectares. ■
